Senior Legal Counsel - Employment

Madrid or Lisbon

Our client is a globally recognised professional services firm, consistently ranked among the most prestigious organisations in its field. With thousands of professionals operating across offices in every major region, it advises some of the world's most influential businesses, governments and institutions on their most complex challenges.

The firm's in-house legal function is genuinely award-winning - a team of exceptional lawyers embedded at the heart of a high-performance, intellectually stimulating environment. The culture is collaborative, the work is substantive, and the organisation has a long-standing reputation as an employer of choice.

This is a senior advisory role with real regional ownership, genuine cross-border scope, and direct access to leadership - an opportunity for an employment lawyer who wants to operate at the top of their game within a world-class organisation.

The Role

As Senior Legal Counsel - Employment, you will be the lead employment law advisor for Iberia and LATAM, embedded within a global Centre of Expertise. You will provide end-to-end legal support across the full employee lifecycle and act as a trusted partner to HR and business leadership on complex, sensitive people matters.

Key Responsibilities

• Advise on the full employee lifecycle: hiring, termination, mobility, immigration, disputes, investigations and regulatory matters
• Act as a trusted advisor to HR and business leadership, balancing legal risk with commercial priorities
• Coordinate with People teams to ensure consistency in policies and decision-making
• Collaborate with colleagues across the global legal function to resolve complex employment law issues
• Contribute to global projects within the employment Centre of Expertise
• Develop and maintain legal templates, forms and other intellectual property
• Manage relationships with external counsel

Requirements

• Spanish-qualified employment lawyer with 8+ years' PQE in labour and employment law
• Deep expertise in Spanish employment law; exposure to additional jurisdictions across Iberia and/or LATAM is advantageous
• Prior in-house experience within a complex international organisation, ideally in professional services
• Proven ability to advise senior stakeholders clearly and concisely, with a practical, solution-oriented approach
• Experience managing external legal advisers
• Full fluency in English and Spanish; additional language skills are an advantage

About You

You are a confident, commercially minded lawyer who communicates with clarity and gravitas. You are comfortable operating autonomously in a fast-paced international environment, managing competing demands while maintaining high standards. You thrive in collaborative structures and understand the value of building strong relationships across functions and geographies.